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After playing the PC version Blood-Bowl not along ago I now understand the game. And now I can really appreciate your models. Good work Maybe you could try hand at a Lizardman team? Would be interesting in seeing what you could come up with

Thanks, Nashbashem! To tell you the truth, I have very little inclination of building and painting Lizardmen myself. However, my colleague has a beautifully painted Lustria team, so you might get some glimpses of it, once the report from my first Blood Bowl game comes rolling around

For now, though, more Orcs!

While most of my Blood Bowl players are indeed “refurbished” 40k and WFB Orcs, I actually went and picked up a new box of Black Orcs in order to build some Blockers for the Orkheim Ultraz. Not only will the contents of that box come in handy for my Orcish warband for Mordheim as well, but I also wanted my Black Orcs to look suitably impressive and heavily armoured.

Fortunately enough, the plastic Black Orcs are perfect recreations of those cool late 90s metal models I loved so much when I was still playing WFB, and they also work really well as Blood Bowl models with only some minor adjustments: When building them, I cut off their weapons to just leave the armoured gauntlets. Apart from that, it was all smooth sailing. So here are my first two completed Black Orc Blockers:



As you can see, the heavy armour instantly differentiates them from both the Linemen and the Blitzers. I used pretty much the same paint recipe for their armour, though, to make sure they fit the overall look of the team. Let’s check out the models in more detail:









The first guy uses a helmeted head. And I only cut off his weapons’ blades, leaving the hilts looking like crude knuckledusters. As you can see, some of the armour plates were picked out in black for some added variety. Apart from that, though, I stuck to my usual recipe. I also added some Gorkamorka decals in yellow, once again.

And here’s the second model:









Easily one of my favourite models in the team so far: The pose and screaming face really tell you that it is ON now Plus the bare face really adds some personality to the model. I painted the mouth and tongue in a mix of red and purple and washed the mouth cavity with GW Leviathan Purple for some added depth.



For many people, the most important thing about Black Orcs is their skin colour. And while I wanted my own Blockers to look slightly different from my players, I didn’t want to use a completely different recipe for their skin. For one, my approach so far had produced a skin colour I really liked. And I also don’t like Black Orcs that have a completely different skin colour from the regular Orcs surrounding them.

So my solution to this particular problem was to repeat my usual recipe step for step, but mix in a drop of black for each step. That way, the skin of the Black Orcs ended up looking slightly darker and more desaturated. Take a look at this comparison image:



As you can see, the regular Orc has a bit of a yellowish tinge to his skin, while the Black Orc’s skin is slightly darker and less vibrant. While some people may think it’s still too light, I am rather pleased with the outcome.



So with that, my first two Black Orc Blockers were finished. And there’s eight more where those two came from. While some of those models will be used for my Mordheim Orcs, I guess I’ll eventually paint two more Blockers for the Orkheim Ultraz.

But first things first: Only one more Lineman to go, and then my initial team roster will be finished. And then, my first ever Blood Bowl game! So expect an update on these guys pretty soon!

Until then, as always, thanks for looking and stay tuned for more!

Wow I like the subtleties between the skin tones, it's substantially different, but the tones are very similar. Looks Great!

Gosh, so many distractions at the moment... Inq, chaos warriors, Eldar, Gorilla Orks....

Cheers, ghosty! I have to say I was rather surprised myself, since it was really easy to do!

Oh, and while I am definitely feeling your pain, Instead of getting sidetracked, you should totally be focusing on your INQ28 warband. Trust me on this one!

So while I've been entangled in all kinds of hobby projects, what have those Greenskins been up to, I wonder?

Good news regarding the Orkheim Ultraz: This rather unassuming Lineman was the last model to be painted for the initial team roster to be completed:









Not a particularly impressive member of the team, to be sure. Just another Orc trying his best to catch a ball that is too damn clever

The model was still significant, though, since putting the last brush strokes on this guy meant I finally head a playable team! Yay! Let’s take a closer at the finished models:

Thrower:



Linemen



Blitzers



Black Orc Blockers



And, of course, Les Gobboz:



I was really pretty fast this time, mostly painting these guys in pairs. So now the Orkheim Ultraz are ready to face their first game. Here’s the whole team for you:





So does this mark the end of this particular hobby endeavour? No way! For starters, I have to tell you that I cannot recall when I last had so much fun painting models, so I will eagerly jump at the opportunity to get some more Ultraz finished. But what’s in the cards for the team?

Well, first we will have to see how these guys are doing in an actual game. More on that soon! Then there is couple of models yet to be added: First of all, the fan/cheerleader models I have already built as well as the team’s “Kit Git”. Several people have also advised me to add two more Black Orcs to the team, and from what little I understand of the rules, I am tempted to agree (it helps that the models are so cool, of course…). Then I’ll probably build and paint one additional thrower and lineman, respectively, just to be on the safe side. I also recently purchased a WFB plastic feral Orc Waaghboss to convert a suitably brutal looking star player. And I love the new plastic trolls, so adding one of those (and another one to my soon to be Mordheim warband) certainly isn’t out of the question. And there’s always the fact that rumours of a new edition of Blood Bowl hitting the shelves later this year have begun to surface, so there’s that to consider as well…

Anyway, all of that is still in the future. For now, let’s get these guys broken in and bloodied for the first time on an actual Blood Bowl pitch. I’ll get back to you shortly to tell you how that went…

Until then, let me hear all the C&C you can think of! And, as always, thanks for looking and stay tuned for more!

Great looking team! Really unified and they look good at crumpin'!

The latest lineorc is another fine addition. I look forward to hearing how their season goes!

Awesome work as always, that's a fantastic and very characterful team you have

Cheers, guys! I suppose the next update will tell us something about these guys' first experiences on the pitch

Absolutely wonderful Orc team looking forward to the report from their first game

Looking good Kraut, the Black Orcs in particular looks badass, those are some nice models.

I personally think you should add a ball to your throwers hand - just a quick GS job would do, or you can sometimes find the plastic balls from the game online. It is a bit weird having a ball in hand and another on the pitch but it's not as weird as throwing a pass with an empty hand!

Cheers, guys!

@ Bruticus: I've actually gone back and forth on that particular issue multiple times, and I'm still not sure: I'm against more than two balls on the pitch at the same time for the reason you mentioned, but you still raise a valid point. May have to think about this some more...

These guys are excellent kraut. I especially enjoy the knuckledusters on the black Orc, and the gobbo signaling he's open.

@ Theophony: You know, I never even realised that the gobbo could be interpreted to signal he was open -- that's brilliant! To my mind, he seemed to be basking in the adoration of the crowd, but your interpretation makes much more sense! Thanks for pointing that out, mate!

Alright, everyone, like I promised, here's a report from my Orc team's first game:

With the initial team members for the Orkheim Ultraz converted and painted, it was time to face my first opponent on the lawn. Unfortunately, I had virtually zero knowledge of the actual rules — certainlynot a perfect state of affairs!

Fortunately enough, my colleague Annie and her husband Mike kindly agreed to show me the ropes, so the Orkheim Ultraz were ready for their first actual game. Here they are, already on the pitch (with a cheeky Saurian having managed to sneak into the background…):



And here are their opponents: Annie’s and Mike’s beautifully painted Lustria team:



The first step was for Annie and Mike to slowly talk me through the basic rules. I am particularly slow on the uptake when it comes to learning tabletop rules, yet I found the Blood Bowl rules to be pleasantly compact. That didn’t mean that I understood everything from the get go, but they did everything they could to make things easier for me: Mike would play against me, while Annie served as an aide-de-camp of sorts to myself (which was really a good thing for the moments when it all became a bit much…).

Anyway, here’s what things looked like at the start of the game:



Lustria had the kickoff, so some of my more nimble players hung around my backfield, ready to take possession of the ball, should it come flying their way, while my Black Orcs and Blitzers were entrenched at the line of scrimmage, awaiting the saurian assault.

The ball landed far in my backfield, right next to my thrower — what a lucky coincidence, right? Unfortunately, the one guy in my team actually handy with a ball failed to pick it up right at the start. And I quickly found out that those small Skinks are really fast. Ouch!

Nevertheless, I managed to take possession of the ball on my second turn, even passing it to one of my linemen who then started to advance down the field, his Saurian pursuers hot on his heels. Meanwhile, all my Black Orcs were doing was to be knocked on their asses again and again by Mike’s Kroxigor — hence “Blockers”, I suppose.



After some back and forth (and quite a few Orks keeling over due to a pummeling in true Lustrian fashion), one of my Blitzers was in possession of the ball, and thinks were looking pretty good:



But, once again, a gang of saurians surrounded him and beat him to a pulp. One of the lizards was then attacked by one of my players in turn, sending the ball spinning into Mike’s backfield. And, right enough, one of his speedy little Skinks broke off from the hubbub at the line of scrimmage to take possession of the ball. Mike gave it his all to move the Skink as far as he could, and things were looking pretty bad for me, but then the Skink failed a sprinting roll and tripped over his own feet:



That left Mike with only a Saurus in his backfield to try and take back the ball. Yet one of my Linemen – actually the unassuming last model I painted – danced around the Saurus (insofar as the verb “dance” can be applied to an Orc) courtesy of a number of lucky dice rolls, picked up the ball and advanced towards the touchdown zone:



I had to pass one last sprinting throw to make a touchdown. I rolled the die — and passed. Touchdown!



In my joy, I didn’t even realise that we should normally have played at least another half, so Mike would probably have handed my ass to me after all. But I think this first little game worked as a rather nice introduction to Blood Bowl for me.

Regarding the game itself, I found it pretty fast and pleasantly tactical. And it was certainly a relief to encounter a tabletop game where setting up didn’t become a game of its own (as can happen in larger games of 40k). One thing that took some getting used to was the frequency at which models kept getting knocked down and getting back up: In my native 40k, once a model is down, it’s down for good. Blood Bowl seems to be much more about models bouncing back. It’s certainly fun, though! I can easily see myself taking the game for another spin!

Oh, and the fact that both “armies” were fully painted was a huge boon as well. With only about a dozen models per side, getting it all painted is of course a much less daunting prospect. Still, playing with a fully painted set of models is always the best possible option, and it’s great that we were able to do that!

We also found out that, by sheer coincidence, I had managed to build some of my Orc models to be perfectly compatible with the ball:



So, in closing, it has been a fun first outing for the Orkheim Ultraz. More to follow, I hope! Let me wind up this post by showing you Mike’s and Annie’s Slann trainer: He may not be 100% finished, but never has a cap looked so good on a reptile, I’ll wager



So, many thanks to Mike and Annie for taking the time to show me the ropes and being such gracious hosts! And, as always, thanks to you for looking and stay tuned for more!

Congrats on getting your first game in. Lizardmen are a hard team to face as they are just brutal. They have speed, strength, and great armor on the bigger guys. I play them and dwarves (though I use Norse figures as I don't like the current dwarf team look). If you play them again make sure to hit the little skinks. They are extra squishy, an if yo can get them off the field then the bigger guys are easier to manage.

That catcher of yours looks like he's doing a post touchdown dance

LOL, great batrep and pics! I love the gameboard when it has fully-painted minis. (and how wierd is that that your models can actually hold the spike ball... have you ever seen one before, or is it just plain luck??)

Your friends' Lizardmen team also looks friggin' awesome. Are they truly for the game, or also conversions like your team? Also... did they make Parasaurolophus skulls for helmets on their skinks? (The duck-bill dinosaur with the funky boomerang crest) If so... pretty cool, man.

-Remi

@hf I have the team as well, so I can safely say yes to the skink helmets. All the lizardmn guys seem o be stock models, might have some tiny green stuff work, but that's the base team I have as well.

Cheers, guys!

@ Theophony: You're absolutely right about the Skinks! As a matter of fact, I forgot to mention that, after seeing that these little guys were trouble, I made it my priority to pund them into the ground. At the end of the first half, there was only a single Skink left standing in MIke's team

@ HF Izanagi: Cheers, Remi: The models being able to hold the ball was a sheer coincidence, since I had never seen a Blood Bowl ball firsthand before the game. In all fairness, though, those open hands are fairly versatile, so it's mainly a question of balance

Theophony is right about the Lustria models, btw: As far as I know, all of them are stock models. Mike and Annie have some wickedly converted cheerleaders and fans, though, that I carelessly forgot to photgraph. And that dapper little cap on the Slann was done with GS, of course

Just a tiny intermission: Even though I am having such massive fun working on the Orkheim Ultraz and feel I still have some more models for the team in me, the eventual goal of also building an Orc warband for Mordheim isn't forgotten. I lately started messing around with a couple of bitz towards that end, and here is a VERY early WIP that makes me stupidly happy for some reason:



Now I do of course realise that this is nothing more than an (armless) Orc boy with a Bretonnian helmet, but that's the kind of look I am going for: an Orcish band of medieval and/or renaissance-style soldiers. More updates regarding either this or the Blood Bowl team soon!

The war and can always be used to represent fans in the bleachers, so tattoos and pendants can be modeled onto the warband.

Great looking team and good write-up

I`ve played quite a lot with orcs in BB and my experience has shown me that dropping the gobbos in favour of max blitzers and black orcs, one thrower, a troll and the rest linefodder is as solid as it comes. With AV 9 you can go up against most opponents without being afraid of being hurt compared to other teams. So I prefer to keep a constant pressure and deny movement by being in my opponents face all the time and using my blitzers for hurting valuable players and scoring. Here`s my latest orc team:
http://anarchy.bloodbowlleague.com/default.asp?p=ro&t=dak
Gives an idea at least on the skills I value in an orc team.

Good luck with BB and I hope you stick with it

R

PS: play league play, only thing that matters.

Great looking BB team and glad you had a great game
Looking forward to seeing the Morheim models. I can't remember if I asked before but what is Mordhiem? Is mainly story based hence why you only have a small amount of models?

I disappear for a week and miss some awesome updates

Cheers, guys!

@ Theophony: Oh, rest assured that the Mordheim warband will have lots and lots of strange bitz and doodads!

@ Red Skullz: Cheers, mate! Thanks for the strategy input To tell you the truth, though, my first and foremost goal with these guys was to build a team of models I liked - hence the Gobboz, since I just love Night Goblins. I suppose new team members will be added over time for extra tactical flexibilty, but I already mentioned that I headed into this project with very little rules knowledge, so bear with me

@ Nashbashem: Mordheim is a skirmish system released by GW in the late 90s/early 2000s, IIRC. Imagine Necromunda for WFB, set against the background of a crumbling, disease ridden, demented medieval city in an uproar after a meteor strike, with all kinds of unsavoury warbands fighting over the ruined streets -- that's Mordheim in a nutshell. Like Necromunda, it can probably be as story based as you like, although the low model count simply stems from the fact that it's a skirmisher in the first place.

Alright, so after my first game of Blood Bowl, I felt the need to reward myself with a new model for my team. And since I had wanted to do something with GW’s plastic Savage Orc Waaaghboss anyway, this was a very nice excuse to add another player to the Orkheim Ultraz.

I’ve worked with quite a few of the WFB plastic characters by now, and they are usually really excellent, easy to put together and highly detailed and dynamic. Using them for conversions takes a little thinking, however, since the parts fit together in a very specific way. Still, it’s usually possible to bend them to your will, if you’re a little careful with the cutting.

In this case, The objective was to build an orcish star player for the Orkheim Ultraz. It really was a modelling and painting project, first and foremost, with very little rules consideration in place, yet I suppose the model could be used as Varag Ghoulchewa.

Anyway, I assembled the model, basically only changing the arms: the huge axe normally wielded by the model went into my bitzbox, while the forearms were replaced with Black Orc gauntlets. This was done both to give the model a suitable pose for a Blood Bowl player and to make this guy look like he could pull some really nasty punches with those armoured fists of his. And while I wanted to keep the “almost naked” savage orc look, I also added some 40k Ork armour plates here and there to give the model at least a suggestion of armour (and better tie it in with the rest of the team).

This is what the model looked like before painting:









After taking these photos, I realised that I would have to shorten the model’s left arm by a notch, so that’s what I did: This guy may be an Orc, but that arm did look too long even for a race of malproportioned green monsters.

In hindsight, I might have done something more involved with the model’s arms, of course, changing the pose into something different, but to be honest, I didn’t want to have to do lots and lots of sculpting, so I went for a rather simple solution.

Actually, the most involved part of the conversion was to cut the rock the model is jumping off of from the surrounding WFB base to be able to use it on a round base. I added the usual mix of glue, modelling sand and cork around it to blend it in and create some texture on the base.

Anyway, when it came to painting this guy, I stuck to my tried and true Orkheim Ultraz formula. Of course, the fact that the model has so much skin on display meant that Brian’s fantastic recipe for orc skin could truly shine once again. And I also added some yellow Gorkamorka decals on the armour plates.

Painting this guy was a blast, and so, a relatively short while later, the model was completed:









As you can see, I also added a generous helping of static grass again, to emulate the football pitch look.

All in all, I think the Waaaghboss makes a nice star player for the Orkheim Ultraz. And with his distinct look and imposing frame, he makes for a stunning centrepiece:



As always, let me know what you think! And, of course, thanks for looking and stay tuned for more!

That guy is fething sick!

I like it! Don`t think I`ve seen an orc team based of Savage Orcs yet, I believe that would work very well based on this.

Oh and I do have gobbos myself, they are quite funny. Especially when you let the troll throw them around for 1 turn TDs

R

Love him! You can really see he's a star character becuase he looks so different. What else could you add? I can't remember if Orcs get trolls?

Amazing! Your star player looks like he knows what he's doing compared to the rest of the team. Except maybe the black orcs.

The miniature also looks like he might be a bit of a showboater. But still a crowd favourite.

Good spot on the left arm. That's something that can go unnoticed until you look at it in a photo.

EDIT: actually your blisters know what they are doing aswell and that's crumpin'. I can just imagine the team tactics discussion. The receivers are definitely on a wing and a prayer!

Keep up the excellent work!

Ive never played Blood Bowl, but I must say, your team looks awesome and very fun to play.

That savage Orc is awesome, but might I suggest some war paint?